Chapter 1

Chapter 1

One million years ago, humans had just learned how to make fire, ending the era of eating raw meat and drinking blood. One evening, a group of Ape-men returned to their cave with their kill and built a fire.

At that moment, another person walked in from outside the cave. His face was hidden in the darkness, making it impossible for the others to see him clearly.

There was one thing the people in the cave didn’t know-this “person” who had entered was not one of their own kind at all.

A clever Ape-man raised a torch and tentatively approached the newcomer. He looked the stranger up and down; yes, the stranger looked just like him, an equal in appearance. Yet, this clever Ape-man felt that something was off.

He grunted a series of sounds at the man: “I haven’t seen you before.”

The man smiled. “Just passing through. Want to sleep.”

Humans are social animals, and the request was granted by the people in the cave.

In the middle of the night, while everyone else was sound asleep, the man who had held the torch earlier tossed and turned. He was fixated on a single question-

What exactly was wrong with this person who had walked in?

One nose, two eyes, one mouth, two ears, two arms, two legs…

Everything was normal. There were no extra tails or wings.

The clever Ape-man was utterly perplexed; he simply felt that something was wrong!

He stole a glance at the traveler, who was currently sleeping soundly.

In the latter half of the night, he finally drifted off into a daze and had a dream. In the dream, he saw the traveler again.

They were alone in the dream. Feeling a sense of dread, he called out to the gods above for protection.

The man seemed to see right through him and said, “Shh. Even the heavens don’t know I exist…”

The two drew closer. Trembling, the Ape-man stared at the figure opposite him and finally realized what was wrong!

He woke up and ran out of the cave like a madman, screaming piercingly!

“It’s terrifying! I have to tell everyone this secret!”

From then on, the genetic fear of that thing was passed down through human history. Because of this, modern society derived a term-the Uncanny Valley Effect.

*Click!*

In my study, my Cousin, Lin Yu, tapped the final key on her computer and looked up at me.

“So what happened next? What secret did that clever Ape-man discover?” I asked curiously.

My Cousin closed her laptop, picked up her coffee, and said through a mouthful of drink, “This is just a story I started writing. I haven’t decided what the secret is yet.”

Hearing her answer, I looked disappointed. “Sigh, I was getting so sucked into it. I was waiting for you to write the answer, but the author herself doesn’t even know.”

Cousin looked at me. “Lin Yan, don’t you usually have a head full of weird ideas? Help me research how to design this secret.”

I was speechless. “What? You’re a horror novelist, and you’re coming to me for answers?”

Cousin gave my shoulder a boisterous slap. “It’s called brainstorming. My original design was to write the passing Ape-man as a monster, but that’s a bit cliché and lacks suspense.”

“Since your novel is themed around the Uncanny Valley, you definitely can’t depict it as a monster…”

As I spoke, I stood up and pulled a book from the shelf. It was a foreign work mainly focused on the masterpieces of world-famous horror authors, supplemented with some theoretical analyses of horror.

Finding a specific page, I handed the book to my Cousin and sat back down. “Look, the earliest Uncanny Valley theory was about robots and non-human objects.”

Cousin curled her lip. “I’ve known that basic theory for ages.”

Despite her words, she patiently focused on the book.

I couldn’t help but chuckle. “So, since your opening prologue is about ancient Ape-men, a robot is impossible. It wouldn’t be logical, and it would break the immersion.”

Without looking up, Cousin said, “Exactly. So from the start, I defined this thing as something that looks identical to a human but has one fatal flaw. Once a human notices this flaw, they will recognize it for what it is!”

My interest was piqued. “That’s pretty good. So what is the flaw?”

Cousin snapped irritably, “Didn’t I just say? I haven’t thought of it yet!”

Seeing her still lost in thought, I crossed my legs and teased, “Could it be a Martian? A lizard person? Or an underground dweller?”

“Shoo, shoo!” Cousin waved her hand. “Those settings are so boring.”

After a moment, she pointed at the computer. “I’ve already come up with a name for it, though.”

“What name?”

“We are humans, so they shall be called-Humanoids!”

“Oh, come on…” Hearing the name, I leaned back against the sofa. “Could you be any more casual? Besides, if a reader mishears it, they might think you’re just being ‘un-human,’ which would be pretty lame.”

Cousin flashed me a middle finger and went back to the book.

I suddenly thought of a plot point from the story. “Cousin, why did that clever Ape-man feel something was wrong the moment he saw the Humanoid?”

She gave me a deep look, her expression suddenly becoming serious as she asked a bizarre question: “Lin Yan, do you feel afraid when you look at me?”

“Huh?” The question caught me off guard. “What do you mean?”

Seeing my reaction, her tense face broke into a mischievous grin. She said to me, “One characteristic of a Humanoid is that even before their flaw is discovered, a small portion of humans will sense them and feel a sense of dread.”

“But fear has to have a source. If the Humanoid’s flaw hasn’t been found, why would a human be afraid?” I was becoming even more curious.

Cousin placed the book on the table. She suddenly stopped talking and just stared at me blankly, her face turning expressionless again.

“Cousin, why are you looking at me?”

Her behavior was making me feel uneasy.

She tilted her head slightly, wearing a faint, inscrutable smile as she spoke:

“Why do you assume that the person who came to your house today is actually your Cousin?”